Comment by zahlman
2 days ago
It's just hard to imagine. I'm no stranger to the surrounding areas here, either. And I'm accustomed to a world where <10k population towns have competing grocery stores within city limits (and multiple restaurants), and the really rural people are farmers who produce their own food (and occasionally sell e.g. fresh corn at the roadside).
The difference is that you're close to a body of fresh water, and while it's cold as fuck for a good part of the year, there's enough sunlight and arable land around you for either farming or indoor farming to (partially) support the city's food needs. You're also still within an hour or two of a world-class major city with an urban area population close to 10 million people.
Like I said, you go to rural Texas or Wyoming, Yukon or Northern Territories, it ain't easy to grow food - the conditions just aren't there. And you're not exactly close to any urban centers or large farms.